Written questions by Stainbank.

What assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of giving the Enforcement Conduct Board the power to (a) grant and (b) revoke EC2 certificates, in the context of its forthcoming response to the Regulation of the debt enforcement sector consultation.

The Government is committed to strengthening the regulation of enforcement firms and agents who use the Taking Control of Goods procedure in England and Wales. On 9 June 2025, we launched a consultation on proposals to introduce an independent statutory regulator for enforcement firms, when parliamentary time allows. The consultation also asked whether a regulator should have a role in certificating enforcement agents. The consultation closed on 21 July 2025. We will publish the Government’s response in due course.

When his Department plans to publish a response to the Regulation of the debt enforcement sector consultation.

The Government is committed to strengthening the regulation of enforcement firms and agents who use the Taking Control of Goods procedure in England and Wales. On 9 June 2025, we launched a consultation on proposals to introduce an independent statutory regulator for enforcement firms, when parliamentary time allows. The consultation also asked whether a regulator should have a role in certificating enforcement agents. The consultation closed on 21 July 2025. We will publish the Government’s response in due course.

Whether she plans to maintain the UK’s Digital Services Tax until an international agreement on the taxation of multinational digital companies delivers at least an equivalent revenue outcome for the UK.

The Digital Services Tax is an interim solution to widely held concerns with the international corporate tax framework, and the UK remains committed to remove it once a global solution on the reallocation of taxing rights is in place.As the Chancellor has previously said, we will continue to make sure that businesses pay their fair share of tax, including businesses in the digital sector.

Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions her Department has had with the devolved administrations on harmonising policy on ending the use of (a) cages and (b) close‑confinement systems in farming.

Defra regularly engages with the devolved Governments on a range of animal welfare issues.

What steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues to support economic growth in Scotland.

Our Plan for Change is creating jobs, driving growth and delivering for Scotland.Our recent trade mission to India, resulted in a raft of major new deals leading to more than 100 brand new jobs in Scotland.This comes on the back of Norway’s decision to select Glasgow-built warships bringing billions of pounds into the Scottish economy securing thousands of jobs.The Clean Energy Jobs Plan to train up the next generation of clean energy workers will recruit over 40,000 workers into clean energy jobs in Scotland by 2030.And of course our focus as a Labour government is ensuring that people don’t only have access to work, but that work pays - and that’s why we have ensured a pay rise for 200,000 of the lowest paid Scots.

What assessment she has made of the adequacy of induction processes for new asylum seekers.

The Home Office recognises that individuals new to the UK and unfamiliar with the asylum process may have questions and uncertainties, and so it issues an information booklet to asylum claimants at the point of claim, which outlines the asylum process and the claimant’s responsibilities within it. The booklet (which is also available on GOV.UK) includes sections on legal advice, additional help and assistance, with links to relevant legal bodies and support organisations. New and existing asylum seekers are also able to contact in their own language the asylum helpline run by Migrant Help. The helpline provides information about the asylum process including asylum support and adapting to life in the UK. Migrant Help services are also available face-to-face in initial accommodation. All asylum processes, including those for new asylum seekers, are kept under review.

What steps his Department is taking to ensure the long-term competitiveness of the bus manufacturing sector.

The Government is committed to strengthening the long-term competitiveness of the UK bus manufacturing sector and accelerating the shift to zero-emission vehicles. This includes reforms to bus procurement, supporting the work of the DfT UK Bus Manufacturing Expert Panels, and a £15 billion investment over five years to improve local transport in the North and Midlands, supporting sector growth and new zero-emission buses. Through DRIVE35, we are providing funding to support R&D and commercial scaling of zero-emission vehicles, creating skilled jobs and attracting private investment for sustained sector success.

Whether the Government have reviewed the underspend on the Equitable Life Payment Scheme.

Under the previous Conservative Government, the Equitable Life Payment Scheme was wound down and closed in 2016. The only remaining part of the Payment Scheme in operation is the annual payments made to eligible With-Profit-Annuitants and the Scheme is on track to distribute the remainder of the £1.5 billion as planned. There are no plans to reopen any decisions relating to the Payment Scheme or review the £1.5 billion funding allocation previously made to it. Further guidance on the status of the Payment Scheme after closure is available at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/equitable-life-payment-scheme#closure-of-the-scheme.

When her Department plans to publish the integrated public transport strategy.

As committed to in the Government’s manifesto, we will be publishing a long-term strategy for transport to set out the Department’s vision for domestic transport across England. We intend to publish the Strategy towards the end of this year.

What assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the application of the Litigation and Settlement Strategy on settlements made following disguised renumeration schemes.

The Government commissioned an independent review of the loan charge to help bring the matter to a close for those affected whilst ensuring fairness for all taxpayers. The Government will respond by Autumn Budget 2025. The Litigation and Settlement Strategy (LSS) ensures that HMRC applies the law fairly and consistently. The LSS applies as much to the resolution of a dispute with a multinational corporation as it does to small business customers or individuals. This ensures every taxpayer, no matter who they are, pays the tax due under the law. Central to the LSS is that HMRC will not settle a dispute by agreement for an amount which is less than it would reasonably expect to obtain from litigation.

Food and Rural Affairs, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of bringing forward legislative proposals to make ecocide a criminal offence.

The UK has strong laws in place to protect the environment. Contravention of many of these is a criminal offence. Convictions are sought to punish significant or persistent environmental offending.

How many inquests following deaths at work are in progress in (a) England, (b) Wales and (c) Northern Ireland.

The Ministry of Justice is responsible for coroner law and policy in England and Wales but does not collate real-time data on inquests in progress across the jurisdiction. Annual Coroner Statistics for England and Wales are published at https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/coroners-statistics-2024. These include information on inquests opened and completed, but this is not broken down by setting. The Ministry of Justice is not responsible for the coroner jurisdiction in Northern Ireland, which is instead overseen by the Northern Ireland Executive’s Department for Justice.

What recent discussions her Department has had with the Scottish Government on extending the provisions of the Bus Services Bill to Scotland.

Policy responsibility for transport in Scotland is devolved to the Scottish Government. Any decisions on adopting measures in the Bus Services (No. 2) Bill relating to devolved matters are for them to make. These constitute the vast majority of Bill measures. Department for Transport officials have engaged with Scottish Government counterparts to discuss measures in the Bill throughout its passage. As a result of this engagement, an amendment was made in the House of Commons extending the powers to prohibit the use of new non-zero emission buses from no earlier than 2030 to the Bill. The Government is also committed to working with and sharing best practice with the devolved governments in Scotland and Wales as bus reform is carried out in England.

What discussions he has had with the Scottish Government on issuing a Scotland Act Order to permit the bringing into force of relevant sections of the Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Act 2024.

Scotland Act Orders are pieces of secondary legislation made under the Scotland Act 1998 and are used to implement, update or adjust Scotland’s devolution settlement. A Section 104 order is used to make provision which is considered necessary in consequence of any provision made by or under an Act of the Scottish Parliament.My officials are working with Scottish Government officials to determine the scope of the request for a Scotland Act Order made in consequence of the Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Act 2024.

Innovation and Technology, what discussions she has had with Cabinet colleagues on the potential impact of the Online Safety Act on people accessing health and sobriety apps.

The Online Safety Act requires user-to-user and search services to take proportionate steps to tackle illegal content – and protect children from harmful content – on their services. The Act does not prevent adults from seeking out legal content including health content, and it is not about specific applications.The regulator Ofcom will instead look at the systems and processes that in-scope services have in place for tackling illegal content and protecting children. There are also protections against the ‘over removal’ of content, where platforms take down content they should leave on their sites.

What assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of allowing Band 3 vaccinators to continue in vaccination roles after April 2026.

In December 2020, amendments were made to the Human Medicines Regulations 2012 to provide a mechanism that enabled an expanded workforce to legally and safely administer COVID-19 and influenza vaccines without the input of a prescriber, using an approved protocol. This temporary amendment is due to lapse on 1 April 2026.Recognising the important role the expanded vaccinator workforce has played in safely and effectively delivering COVID-19 and influenza vaccines, the Department is proposing to establish a new permanent provision to support the continued use of an extended workforce to supply and administer vaccinations from 1 April 2026. These proposals are subject to public consultation, which went live on 5 September 2025 and closes on 28 November 2025. The consultation is available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/amend-regulations-to-support-the-supply-and-deployment-of-vaccines

What assessment he has made of the potential merits of introducing a ban on employer deductions for tipped workers.

The Employment (Allocation of Tips) Act 2023 ensures all tips, gratuities and service charges must be passed on to staff in full – except for permitted deductions like tax.It is estimated this ban on employer deductions ensures workers receive around £200 million worth of tips each year that was previously retained by employers. A statutory code of practice was published to support employers on fair and transparent distribution of tips and ensure the requirements are followed.This Government will go further, making it mandatory for employers to consult with workers at their place of business when developing their tipping policies.

Whether he has had recent discussions with his counterpart in the Scottish government on the potential impact of the Subsidy Control Act 2022 on the bus manufacturing industry.

The Subsidy Control Act 2022 enables public authorities to deliver targeted and timely interventions to address local needs and drive economic growth while minimising harm to competition within the UK. It also implements the UK’s international commitments, including those in the UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement and World Trade Organization rules. The UK and Scottish Governments established a joint taskforce in June to consider the situation at Alexander Dennis, and ministers from both Governments have been in correspondence on the matter since then. The Scottish Government recently announced it would provide additional subsidy to Alexander Dennis for a furlough scheme.

Whether she plans to mandate a National Activities Safeguarding Framework for Children and Vulnerable Adults participating in extracurricular activities.

Education is a devolved matter, and the response outlines the information for England only.There are existing frameworks and legal powers in place to safeguard children participating in extracurricular activities.The Children Act 1989 places legal obligations on local authorities to safeguard and promote the welfare of all children in their areas and protect them from harm. There are also similar safeguarding responsibilities placed on local authorities regarding vulnerable adults under the Care Act 2014. Where concerns arise, the department expects their services to intervene using the wide range of powers available to them.The department’s statutory guidance ‘Keeping children safe in education’ also makes clear that child protection arrangements apply where extracurricular activities are provided by a school or college’s governing body, under their direct supervision or management. Where this is not the case, safeguarding requirements should be included in any lease or hire agreement for the premises.Providers of extracurricular activities also have a legal duty of care to take reasonable steps to ensure the safety of children attending their settings and protect them from harm. To support them, the department has published safeguarding guidance and free-to-access e-learning.However, we are actively considering how to further enhance safety in this sector, and as part of our recent call for evidence, which closed on 21 September, we sought views on proposals to strengthen safeguarding in out-of-school settings.

How many people have received indefinite leave to remain in 2025.

The Home Office publishes statistics relating to indefinite leave to remain in the Immigration system statistics publication. The latest data is available up to the end of June 2025.Data on grants of settlement can be found in table Se_D02 of the Settlement data tables. A settlement grant provides individuals with indefinite leave to remain in the UK.Data on EUSS grants are available in table EUSS_D02 of the EUSS data tables. Settled status is an indefinite leave to enter or remain in the UK, granted under the EUSS, which is available to EU, other EEA, and Swiss citizens who were residing in the UK that was launched in August 2018.Additionally, data on family visa grants, included those granted immediate settlement are published in table ‘Vis_D02’ of the detailed entry clearance visas dataset. You may be able to apply for indefinite leave to remain if you have a family member settled in the UK - either as a British citizen or a person with indefinite leave to remain.Information on how to use the dataset can be found in the ‘Notes’ page of the workbook.